Trigger Warning:

This episode contains discussions of parental death, terminal illness, and anticipatory grief. Please take care while listening, especially if you are in the midst of fresh grief or navigating similar losses.

In this deeply heartfelt conversation, Sarah welcomes Tara Accardo, grief and transformational life coach, and host of the Life With Grief podcast. Tara shares her story of devastating loss—losing both parents to cancer within six months, followed by a traumatic birth experience—and how she slowly began to rebuild her sense of self and safety through it all. Together, Sarah and Tara explore the weight of mothering without your own mother, the experience of becoming an adult orphan, and the layered grief that surfaces during major milestones like childbirth and parenting. With honesty and grace, Tara offers insight into how we can begin to feel empowered again after a profound loss—without bypassing the pain.

Whether you're early in grief or years down the path, this episode offers a compassionate reflection on what it means to hold both love and sorrow as lifelong companions.

Today on MotherGrief:

• How grief changes your identity and internal landscape
• The loneliness of becoming an adult orphan and the redefinition of safety
• Moving through the “what ifs” and the self-blame that often accompanies loss
• What it means to keep a parent’s memory alive through parenting
• How loss reshapes the way we love, trust, and show up in the world

Connect with Tara:

• Instagram: @lossesbecomegains | @lifewithgriefpodcast
• Website: lossesbecomegains.com
• Podcast: Life With Grief Podcast
• TikTok: @lifewithgriefpodcast

Connect with Sarah:

• Instagram: @sarahsaintjohn
• Mama Nervous System Reset: https://theuncensoredempath.com/mama-nervous-system-reset

Today, Sarah offers listeners another tender and deeply personal episode. She opens her heart to share the grief of losing her two brothers, Jordan and Joe, and how their absence continues to shape her experience of motherhood. She reflects on what it means to mother without the presence of the very people who helped shape her and and how that loss quietly echoes through everyday moments. This episode holds space for all who have experienced sibling loss and are now raising children while carrying that layered grief. Whether your loss is fresh or decades old, Sarah’s reflections are a balm for the quiet ache you might carry.

Today on MotherGrief:

• How Sarah’s parenting is shaped by unresolved grief and lingering questions
• The longing and wondering of who her brothers would’ve been as uncles
• The visible and invisible ways grief shows up in her daughters’ lives
• The profound truth that we can grieve people we never met
• Creating a legacy through storytelling, rituals, and remembrance
• Navigating the duality of grief and joy in motherhood

Reflection Prompts from Sarah:

• What parts of your siblings do you wish your child could know?
• How has their loss shaped who you are as a mother?
• Is there a story or memory you want to share today to keep them alive?

Connect with Sarah:

• Instagram: @sarahsaintjohn
• Mama Nervous System Reset: https://theuncensoredempath.com/mama-nervous-system-reset

In this tender and intimate solo episode, Sarah explores a form of grief many mothers feel but don’t always have language for: anticipatory grief—the ache that arrives before anything is lost. From the sweetness of bedtime battles to the fleeting mispronunciations of toddlerhood, Sarah invites us into the quiet, sacred spaces where grief and joy co-exist.

Today on MotherGrief:

• The invisible grief mothers carry for the moments already slipping away
• What anticipatory grief feels like in the body and nervous system
• The ache of watching our children grow, even as we celebrate their milestones
• Why naming and moving with grief is an act of deep love
• Nature as a mirror for our own seasonal letting go

Connect with Sarah:

• Instagram: @sarahsaintjohn
• Mama Nervous System Reset: https://theuncensoredempath.com/mama-nervous-system-reset